Digital BW, The Print

Phillip; You obviously have many more choices and experience than a 
newbie coming and trying to figure out which printer to go with; My 
point was that we know nothing about the R1400, so anyone needing to 
choose now should forget it for the time being. As for out-of-the-box 
B&W, the 2400/3800 are really the best choices, once you have tried 
the EZ capable printers. BTW, I didn't see any specifically R1800 EZ 
inksets, though the R200/300 carts would fit, and probably be 
useable. But the 2400 is hands-down the best printer in the 13" size-
it is made better, and will last longer, so in the long haul you will 
get your money's worth. And as for K3 quality, I might suggest (if 
you have'nt already done so) you order a couple test prints from 
Clayton, and see what you think.

And anyhow: whatever B&W solution you apply to an R1800, or R1400, 
you can obviously apply to the R2400 if K3 isn't smooth enough for 
you. 

>> To my eye, BO and 2K can be
> quite good, but can't match the quality of prints from a 4- or 6-
color
> printer with a dedicated b&w inkset. 

I'm with you there, I think K3 is a minimum, at least for my tastes.

>> MIS  has EZ inks that can
> be tweaked using the Epson driver sliders. Personally, I create
> transfer curves for each paper/ink combination and linearize using
> an X-Rite densitometer I picked up on eBay.  This is a *lot* more
> straightforward than creating QTR profiles. 

Haven't tried this approach yet, so I can't really argue the point, 
but you must admit neither way is exactly 'out-of-the-box' B&W.

I have created QTR
> profiles, compared images printed with QTR and the Epson driver, and
> the print quality is identical. There are times when a RIP is the
> right tool for the job, but it's not the only path to high-quality 
b&w.

Sorry, you confused me here- you're talking about using the Epson 
driver with a dedicated B&W inkset, not the OEM inks, yes? If that's 
so, then we get back to the same place: the R2400 is currently the 
best and simplest out-of-the-box setup. Unfortunately, also the most 
expensive. Epson knew what they were doing, after all. As a previous 
poster said, 'you can almost feel their hands in your pocket...'